‘This is not how I’m going to die!’ murder-suicide survivor tells detectives

IONIA COUNTY, Mich (WXMI) – Detectives with the Ionia County Sheriff’s Office are releasing new details following a murder-suicide shooting along I-96 earlier this month.

Investigators issued a press release Wednesday afternoon stating David Somers of Kaleva, Michigan shot and killed his wife Lisa, then shot her 18-year-old daughter Amedy Dewey before turning the weapon on himself. Amedy Dewey continues to recover from grievous facial injuries following the shooting.

Detectives have since been able to interview Amedy Dewey about the circumstances leading up to the shooting. She tells the Ionia County Sheriff that she and her mother, Lisa, had just returned to Michigan from a scheduled cruise and David came to the Gerald R. Ford Airport to pick them up. He had been booked on the cruise but decided the day before the cruise was scheduled to not go.

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A Michigan teen who was shot in the face by her step-father who fatally shot her mom before turning the gun on himself told detectives she did whatever she could to flag down help.

A Michigan teen who was shot in the face by her step-father who fatally shot her mom before turning the gun on himself told detectives she did whatever she could to flag down help.

A Michigan teen who was shot in the face by her step-father who fatally shot her mom before turning the gun on himself told detectives she did whatever she could to flag down help.

A Michigan teen who was shot in the face by her step-father who fatally shot her mom before turning the gun on himself told detectives she did whatever she could to flag down help.

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Investigators say they learned that David and Lisa had argued regarding accusations from Lisa that David was cheated on her. They had argued over the phone and by text messages during the flight back to Michigan.

Neither Lisa nor Amedy knew that David had a shotgun in the couple’s 2011 Chevrolet Equinox when he picked them up at the airport. The argument continued on the highway as they drove towards Midland, where Amedy was staying with a friend. David began driving erratically at high speeds, which witnesses told deputies after the incident.

David pulled over near Nash Highway in Boston Township. He got out of the car and headed towards the back. Both Lisa and Amedy got out too, but Amedy says she heard her mother yell, “He’s got a gun!” and she got back into the car and tried to hide in the back seat. She says she tried to call 911 but was not successful before David shot her in the face. Amedy told deputies that she did not see what happened to her mother.

David shot Lisa once, then turned the gun on himself. The shotgun used in the incident was found underneath him.

Amedy told deputies that her immediate instinct was, “I’m not going to die. This is not how I’m going to die!” She tried using her phone again and climbed into the front seat to beep the horn and flash the lights on the car. She even got out at one point and tried to flag down passing drivers. Other drivers did call 911 to report seeing Amedy but didn’t know the situation.

Ionia investigators say that they have been made aware of reports that David was supposedly being treated for a brain tumor, but they are unlikely to know if it caused or contributed to the murder-suicide. They say they don’t if David was under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, but are waiting for further toxicology reports.

Amedy Dewey continues to recover. A recent post on her CaringBridge site says she is talking and vision seems to be returning to one of her eyes. The Ionia County Sheriff’s Detectives say that they have a “tremendous amount of respect for the courage, tenacity, and strength that this young woman has displayed both during and after this ordeal…”

We will continue to bring you updates on this investigation as they are made available. Look for updated reports on later editions of FOX17 News.